Resources

Here’s a list of my favorite blogs, posts, books, tools and services related to money, efficiency or general life improvement. I’ve personally read/listened/used all of these and can attest to the quality of their content. Feel free to send me a message or leave a comment with any suggestions of resources you’ve found useful and I will gladly check them out!

Books on Finance

Smart Women Finish Rich- David Bach
This book is a great start for anyone just getting their personal finances in order. These would be the intermediate steps before trying to jump right into saving 50%+ like most of these books and blogs suggest. The ties made between money and values are crucial for a fulfilled life. Read my review here.

Your Money or Your Life- Vicki Robbins
Vicki is the OG FIRE guru. She and Joe Dominguez first wrote about this in the early 1990s and she’s updated the book to fit all of the changes that have taken place over the last 30 years. A must read for all!

How to Retire Early- Robert and Robin Charlton
This is the first book I every read that showed me early retirement was a real possibility. The simple way the Charlton’s lay their wealth building phase out is great for anyone to follow, even those that are not financially inclined.

You Need a Budget- Jesse Mecham
Jesse’s real life approach to budgeting is something that everyone just starting out should take the time to read. A quick, yet potentially life-changing read.

Blogs

Mr. Money Mustache
MMM is the OG blog for taking radical responsibility of your personal finances. He’s always good for a quick face punch to get your act together.

Where We Be
This is the first blog that I found on this subject after reading their book (see above). Their travels are absolutely inspiring and give me the travel bug

Afford Anything
Paula Pant is the FI queen of real estate. She’s down to earth and really knows her stuff. There’s a lot more here than just real estate, but it was my first main source of real estate/landlord information.

Mad Fientist
Brandon has pulled the trigger and lives a FI lifestyle now. His in depth content is thought provoking and a little more on the advanced side in relation to taxes and investing.

Fiery Millennials
Gwen is one of the most relatable blogs I’ve ever seen. She tries things out and whether they work or not, she tells everyone to learn from her triumphs, as well as her mistakes.

JL Collins
Jim began his blog and famous “Stock Series” as a letter to his daughter to give her his streamlined advice for how she should handle her money. The care and attention to detail really shows in every post.

The Power of Thrift
Thriftygal, aka Anita, worked as a lawyer until she was 33, paying off almost $100,000 worth of debt along the way and saving for retirement. She now spends her time travelling the world and living life through Operation Awesome.

Our Next Life Tanya is one of the best writers that I’ve ever seen in this space and the only blogger that I’m fully on the same page with her conservative path to FI. She and her husband just recently retired and have been loving life and showing the world what is really possible if you live life with intention.

Frugalwoods Liz and her husband went from living in Boston to living on a homestead in Vermont. Their lifestyle change has improved everything from their expenses to their day to day routine. Amazing read. *Warning: you will probably want to get a homestead after reading this book*

Journey To Launch
I’ve just recently started reading Jamilla’s journey. She is down to earth mother of 3 with a goal of reaching FI by age 40. Her perspective is fresh and rewarding to follow.

Podcasts

Tools

While money is your best tool to reach FI, here are some other FREE tools to track and/or improve your stance on money, travel rewards, etc.

Personal CapitalThis is a great tool to combine all of your accounts to track your net worth easily, efficiently and with some pretty nice graphs. Seeing your assets, liabilities, monthly expenses, income and asset allocations all in one place is invaluable!

Mad Fientist LabThe Mad Fientist is a fantastic resource and this is one of my favorites. Use this tool to input your monthly savings and expenses to track how long you have until you reach your FI number. So far, we’re tracking to May 3031. We’ll get it down to Oct 2029 though. Just wait and see.

Travel Miles 101 CourseHave you ever thought about trying credit card hacking for travel miles, but been completely overwhelmed by all of the information? This is the starting point for you. This e-mail course lays out the basics in a manageable way to make it clear how even you can save thousands on travel.

MadFientist Credit Card HackerOnce you’ve taken the Travel Miles 101 Course, you’re going to want to take a look at this other amazing Mad Fientist tool. He allows you to breakdown all of the current credit card deals by airline, hotel, card type, fees and more, setting you up to make the decision on your next card quick and painless.

Services

Google FiGoogle Fi, previously Google Project Fi, is the cell phone service that my wife and I use. Our bill has been under $60 ever since for both of us combined. The service, price and customer service all keep me coming back. If you’re interested in joining, here is my referral link.

LibbyI’ve just recently discovered this app and I LOVE it. I have the hardest time just getting to the library, but this allows me to take ebooks and audio books out on my phone!! I’ve now replaced all of my mindless wait times with reading because I now constantly carry my books with me at all times.

In full disclosure, none of these are affiliate links, although, I did add two referral links. Overall, I’m just in it to share this information with friends/ family/ anyone else who stops by. If that changes I’ll be the first to let you know.